I’ve also ordered from Elevator Sounds online, and spoken to them on the phone. Friendly, helpful bunch.
Looking at the photos on Google maps, it looks like a nice store to visit. Plenty of synths on the floor, including modular.
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I’ve had loads of stuff from Andertons in Guildford. Guitar Village in Farnham is also great. No Synths but a good selection of effects pedals. The thing I like to see is staff that know their products and are able to hold a conversation long enough for me to make a purchasing decision.
I don’t know what it’s like out there now 'cos I just make shit house demos in my spare room…
But I played keys in bands in the 00s. I found musician friends through clubs & work connections, but eventually joined bands that gained lives of their own. The bands would go to rehearsal spaces and do gigs, and I found that’s where the most interesting, experiences lay: in the spaces between the activities. You’d make connections, have chance encounters, learn workflows and so on.
As synth-nerds, it’s very easy to hang out in our studio/loft/garage/bedroom etc. We can make a lot by ourselves. But I think you gain so much from encounters with random other people doing similar stuff.
I think a synth shop should work that angle. Maybe it needs to be attached to a rehearsal/project studio; maybe it has a working library of synths mainly for the use of the studio, but which potential buyers could come try out. Maybe it’s attached to a mastering studio or vinyl cutting shop. Or work the clubs connection: repairs, DJ hire… anything to get people who are working with music moving through, but moving slowly so they connect with one another as much as the shop.
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In Stockholm, there is a great example of the type of store you are describing: the combo-store Jam Syntoteket/Escape from Noise.
https://www.jam.se/sv/
https://escapefromnoise.com
They always have a big selection of modular, new synths, and vintage stuff. They also do repairs, so additionally there will more or less always be some interesting old stuff leaning against a wall. Most synths are plugged in and ready to be played. And pricing for both vintage and new is competitive. I more or less always drop by when I pass through there.
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I’ve been on both sides of the fence with this, and while I get your viewpoint from a customer pov, I guarantee you that the staff there were/are on commission and feeling squeezed… which translates to shit experiences all round.
I’ve also been the owner of a small niche store, and that soon makes you dislike the general public. 
I’ve just spent 3 long days at Superbooth, and that’s an approach I can get onboard with… absolutely no way would I want to do that 5/6 days a week, but 3 intense days of showing your gear to the right audience is great.
Events like these are by far the best experience you can get now to go and try out gear IMO.
Hopefully we’ll continue to see the rise of events to counteract the decline of retail outlets… and rather than you being greeted by a store employee in a shop who has no idea about the gear you want, you can (usually) speak directly to the people who know it inside out. And they’ll be happy if you walk away and order it online later! 
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Biased here but Patchwerks here has a nice table /bulletin board for associated events, projects, and i really need to get myself out there and get my own collab-seeking cards printed to connect with similar weirdos.
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Yeah, Andertons have a synth section at the back. It’s much smaller than the guitar section of the shop, but stuff is plugged in and they’ll happily give you a set of headphones to try things. Staff are friendly in my limited experience of going there in person (unlike westenddj when I used to get stuff there 10+ years ago)
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Yeah that’s what my mate said to me, asked him a few times if it’s worth the visit over and he always says no. I should go for myself one of these days…
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Off the high street but not too out in the sticks. Nothing worse than trying to get a bulky hardware synth home from a high street store with pedestrian areas and city centre parking etc. A decent inventory of gear obviously and hopefully some boutique stuff. I dare say having some of those otherwise unplayable instruments in store would attract footfall and hopefully would attract sales. Knowledgable staff wouldn’t go amiss either.
Same! So many times you ask about abit of gear and you know in 30secs that you know more about the gear than the person your speaking to. I know not everyone can know everything but your right that it makes a big difference for enjoying the store visit, better conversation, more enjoyable experience, then I want to buy something even if I don’t really need it as a way to say thanks.
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I’d like to visit andertons next time I’ve to work in London. Although first thing is I’ll moan to them as they plaster everywhere “free delivery anywhere in the UK!!!” Buts it’s not, if you live in the Scottish highlands, supposedly that doesn’t count as the uk so costs me a tenner postage…. I must be due like 90quid in over paid deliveries to them for false advertising…
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Here’s an important thing for me (possibly because I’m a massive introvert). Teach the staff not to hassle the shit out of me in a store. Obviously it’s nice to be greeted when entering with a little something along the lines of “try out whatever you want, here’s some headphones, let me know if you need anything”. But then just let me explore by myself. If I want help or advice, I’ll ask for it. But when there’s someone hovering around me with a sales pitch, I’ll just leave with a bad taste in my mouth. Learn when to leave people alone!
(TBF, this mainly happens in guitar stores, where some prick will fretwank something I’m interested in just to show off. I don’t care, mate, let me play it for an hour by myself, please!)
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I don’t normally demo stuff in shops, too much talking to other people is required.
I’ve always wanted to pop down my local PMT store with an SD full of fart sounds and go wild with them on their MPC One that they’ve got hooked up to a really loud pair of speakers, but again, that would likely involve some level of interaction with other people, so fuck that.
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This is exactly the way it works at my local store.
Edit : Moog Audio in Montreal
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What would you like in a synthesizer store?
Synthesizers.
In all seriousness I have not been into a synth/music store in at least 10-12 years, (got none within 20 miles where I live) last one I went to was DV in Cambridge, I bought a Boss RE-20, they had a MPC-2000 there and the helpful dude working there let me try the MPC through the RE-20, we both thought it sounded cool on snares with the spring reverb.
When I was young I used to love going to music shops as there was often tons of second hand gear, and you could always have a deal, but now I buy most new and used gear online as most of the shops have gone, and don’t tend to do much second hand stuff AFAIK.
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Word of the day.
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Yeah the pushy sales twats or the ones who think I’m a crackhead looking to nick something, don’t miss that, and of course that prick playing smoke on the water.
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People spending enough money for it to stay open
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Robert Downey, Jr.?
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Something just like A1 Music in Manchester used to be in the 1980’s…somewhere I can go and spend the entire day dicking around on synths, guitars, drums…loads of geeks to help out too!
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